TEMPE, Ariz. – Sometimes, Angels manager Mike Scioscia watches Howie Kendrick swing a bat and run the bases and all of a sudden it’s 1983 again.

That’s how much Kendrick, the Angels hotshot young second-base prospect, reminds Scioscia of former Dodgers teammate Steve Sax.

Much like Sax, Kendrick has the ability to hurt opponents with his bat and legs. And like Sax did for the Dodgers more than two decades ago, Kendrick is developing into an adept second baseman.

Sax played 14 years in the big leagues, and finished with a career batting average of .281. Scioscia sees plenty of similarities between him and Kendrick.

“There’s definitely some comparisons,” Scioscia said. “Both guys worked hard to become good second basemen, both have speed, although Saxy might have had more pure speed in terms of stealing a base. And both can hit.”

That last part is the reason the Angels are so high on the 23-year old Kendrick, and why they let Adam Kennedy leave as a free agent after last season. Kendrick is expected to take over for Kennedy at second, but it’s his ability to produce with the bat that could make him a mainstay in the Angels’ lineup for years to come.

He’ll start the year batting lower in the lineup, but Scioscia envisions him settling in anywhere from second to fifth in the order as his career progresses.

“He’s going to be in the major grouping of your offense, or of any offense, in baseball,” Scioscia said. “He’s got that much upside.”

Kendrick had four hits in his last six at-bats before Friday’s game against San Diego – a single, double, triple and home run – and was second in Cactus League play in average (.467) and tied for the league lead in slugging percentage (.933) and runs scored.

He insists he hasn’t approached this spring any differently than the last two he attended, but admits he has some extra motivation knowing he’ll likely begin the season as the everyday second baseman.

Kendrick played 72 games with the Angels last year and batted .285 with four home runs and 30 RBIs.

But he knows this year is different.

“I know the opportunity is there and I want to make good on that,” Kendrick said. “But I just want to work hard and not make them regret any decisions they made. I know I want to play at this level and I know I can play at this level.”

WEAVER SIGHTING: Jered Weaver passed his first test of the spring Friday before the Angels played the Padres, completing a pain-free, 30-pitch bullpen session and reporting no problems afterward.

Weaver, recovering from biceps tendinitis, will throw two more bullpen sessions and two live batting practices before taking the mound in an actual game. His status for the season opener remains in doubt, and it’s likely he’ll stay back in Arizona to continue his rehabilitation when the team heads north.

“I’m hopeful of being ready by the season opener,” Weaver said. “If it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t, then I’ll miss a couple of starts, and I’m not too worried about it. I’d rather be there toward the end of the season rather than blow it up at the beginning of the year.”

COLON UPDATE: Bartolo Colon threw off the mound for the second time in three days – his first pitching activity since being shut down last June with a small tear of his rotator cuff – successfully completing another 35-pitch bullpen session. Angels pitching coach Mark Butcher was pleased with both results.

“All good news today,” Butcher said.

FINE LINE: Kelvim Escobar said he hasn’t felt this good in spring training in more than two years. But that’s not necessarly a good thing.

Escobar, 1 1/2 years removed from elbow surgery, says when he feels too good he sometimes tries too hard to overpower hitters. As a result, his mechanics sometimes suffer.

That was the case Friday when he surrendered home runs to San Diego’s Russell Branyan and Jose Cruz Jr. during his three-inning effort. Escobar gave us four hits and three runs during his stint.

The Angels won the game 12-4.

“When I feel that good I have to learn to relax and trust my stuff,” Escobar said. “It’s about pitching, not throwing.

WHO WAS THAT GUY?: Republican Presidential hopeful Rudolph Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City, was at Tempe Diablo Stadium Friday as a guest of Angels owner Artie Moreno. But when Giuliani shook Kendrick’s hand in the on-deck circle between innings, Kendrick was at a loss.

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.